Locke & Key: IDW Develops Comics as TV Series

by Cindy McLennan, May 10, 2016

Locke & Key image courtesy of IDW Publishing.

To every lock, there is a key… IDW Entertainment is developing a Locke & Key TV show adaption. Locke & Key comics creator Joe Hill (Stephen King’s look-alike son), aka Joseph Hillstrom King, will write the pilot and serve as showrunner. Hill will executive produce with Ted Adams and David Ozer from IDW Entertainment, and David Alpert and Rick Jacobs from Circle of Confusion.

This is not the first time Locke & Key has landed in development. In 2010, FOX greenlit a Locke & Key TV series pilot from from DreamWorks TV and executive producers Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. The cast of that Locke & Key TV show pilot included Nick Stahl, Miranda Otto, and Sarah Bolger. The pilot screened in 2011 at New York Comic Con. Below, watch a trailer for the 2011 version of Locke & Key.

Here is the trailer for the 2011 Locke & Key TV show pilot for FOX.

Get more on the new Locke & Key TV show adaption information from this IDW Publishing press release.

IDW Entertainment To Bring Locke & Key To Television

by IDW Publishing on May 9, 2016 in IDW Entertainment, Press Release

Creator Joe Hill To Write The Pilot

IDW Entertainment (“IDWE”) announced today that the award-winning, fan-favorite property Locke & Key is being developed as a television series. Author/creator Joe Hill will be writing the pilot and serving as an executive producer.

Locke & Key has garnered both awards and acclaim during its five-year run. Following the titular Locke family as they encounter magic beyond belief and evils beyond redemption, Locke & Key quickly won over readers and has since become a staple in introducing new readers to the medium. With the series adapted in dozens of languages across the globe, and more than a million copies sold worldwide, Locke & Key is an obvious choice to make the transition to the screen.

New York Times bestselling author, Joe Hill, has continually captivated readers through his gripping novels and award-winning comic series. Bursting onto the scene with his debut collection of short stories 20th Century Ghosts, Hill has continued to thrill audiences with the novels, Heart-Shaped Box, N0S4A2, and Horns, adapted into a feature-length film in 2013, starring Daniel Radcliffe. His forthcoming novel The Fireman debuts later this month. In addition to Locke & Key, his comic series The Cape, Thumbprint, Wraith, and the upcoming series Tales From The Darkside, have all been published by IDW.

“I love this story,” said Hill. “The seven years I spent working on Locke & Key was the happiest creative experience of my life and there still isn’t a day when I don’t think about those characters and miss visiting with them. The six books of the series are very like six seasons of a cable TV series and so it feels only natural to bring that world to the little screen and to see if we can’t scare the pants off viewers everywhere.”

Ted Adams and David Ozer from IDW Entertainment, and David Alpert and Rick Jacobs from Circle of Confusion (The Walking Dead) will serve as executive producers along with Joe.

“Having Joe at the helm of the pilot ensures that the series will hold true to the brand that fans around the world have come to love. Locke & Key is a true global franchise”, said David Ozer, President of IDW Entertainment.

IDW Entertainment is developing Locke & Key as a straight to series and will maintain worldwide rights to the project.

Casting on the newest Locke & Key adaptation has yet to be announced. When we know, you will. In the meantime, watch a promo for “Behind-the-scenes of Joe Hill’s Locke & Key,” — an audio-play, from Audible.

What do you think? Are you a fan of the Locke & Key comics? Who would you like to see cast in the Locke & Key TV series? Do you expect Locke & Key will be ordered to series? Which network, channel, or streaming outlet should order Locke & Key?